Sunday, November 25, 2012

• The manicurist was fast and efficient • She used thinner coats• She painted with tiny feathery, overlapping strokes - almost like blending paint on a canvas - this is impossible for me to do• Amazing cuticle clean-up *

* ... Just for that I would go back. While the experience was unique, what with a fizzy, scented soak, steaming towels, cuticle oil etc., the finished result looks similar enough to what I can accomplish on my own that I'd want to stick with doing them myself. The only difference of course, is that the whole process is much faster, and less tedious/stressful ... but I think I just need more practice.

• Another very surprising thing was that the manicurist allowed very little dry time in between coats. I always let the first coat dry for upwards of 2-3 minutes. She, on the other hand, painted a thin coat on each nail, then immediately went back to the beginning and applied the 2nd coat. Maybe the trick is a very thin first coat? Hm.

Colors used:

OPI 'Jade is the new black'

OPI 'Greenwich Village'

I still have a pedicure left on my voucher (hooray!) ... so I'll be saving that for the summer! For toes, I'd want to go with a more classic color like a poppy red, a bright pink, or a sleek neutral. I went with green for my fingers because I have never purchased genuine green polish before (only that metallic mermaid green). Every time I see it in the store, I want it – and never get it because it seems like the exotic color that'll get used once a year (as was the case with the metallic mermaid green). The darker green (Jade is the new black) has a hint of teal in it and actually turned out to be quite lovely for this time of year - reminiscent of wintry pines, holly, fir branches, and christmas trees.

Tip for the future:

If you want the ease of professionally done nails, and also want to save some $$$, ask for a 'polish change', not a manicure. The place I went to, ThinkPink, offered these for $6 less, and the only difference may be the lack of a hand massage, which is silly anyway. It tickled and lasted like, a minute.

Mani hands - Green Edition

Thoughts & comparisons with doing it myself:

• The manicurist was fast and efficient • She used thinner coats• She painted with tiny feathery, overlapping strokes - almost like blending paint on a canvas - this is impossible for me to do• Amazing cuticle clean-up *

* ... Just for that I would go back. While the experience was unique, what with a fizzy, scented soak, steaming towels, cuticle oil etc., the finished result looks similar enough to what I can accomplish on my own that I'd want to stick with doing them myself. The only difference of course, is that the whole process is much faster, and less tedious/stressful ... but I think I just need more practice.

• Another very surprising thing was that the manicurist allowed very little dry time in between coats. I always let the first coat dry for upwards of 2-3 minutes. She, on the other hand, painted a thin coat on each nail, then immediately went back to the beginning and applied the 2nd coat. Maybe the trick is a very thin first coat? Hm.

Colors used:

OPI 'Jade is the new black'

OPI 'Greenwich Village'

I still have a pedicure left on my voucher (hooray!) ... so I'll be saving that for the summer! For toes, I'd want to go with a more classic color like a poppy red, a bright pink, or a sleek neutral. I went with green for my fingers because I have never purchased genuine green polish before (only that metallic mermaid green). Every time I see it in the store, I want it – and never get it because it seems like the exotic color that'll get used once a year (as was the case with the metallic mermaid green). The darker green (Jade is the new black) has a hint of teal in it and actually turned out to be quite lovely for this time of year - reminiscent of wintry pines, holly, fir branches, and christmas trees.

Tip for the future:

If you want the ease of professionally done nails, and also want to save some $$$, ask for a 'polish change', not a manicure. The place I went to, ThinkPink, offered these for $6 less, and the only difference may be the lack of a hand massage, which is silly anyway. It tickled and lasted like, a minute.